Workers left vulnerable as social media blurs the lines between home and office

Nicky Phillips

Condemning tweets ... social media posts have been used as evidence in at least four disciplinary tribunals. Photo: Bloomberg

POLITICS has been redefined by it; wars have been organised with it; movies have been made about it.

Social media may have revolutionised the way people connect, but workplace experts warn these sites can blur the boundaries between home and work life, with serious consequences.

Social media posts have been used as evidence in at least four disciplinary tribunals where health professionals have been accused of having a sexual relationship with current or former patients in the past two years.

A workplace relations academic, Alison Barnes, who has co-written a report on the topic, Social Media at Work, with legal academic Louise Thornthwaite, said it was common for people to vent about a bad day at work, or reveal confidential information on social media and assume what they wrote was private.

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Dr Thornthwaite, from the University of Western Sydney, said unlike other electronic forms of communication, social media encouraged users to be more relaxed and colloquial.

As well as writing inappropriate comments, workers could find themselves in a tricky situation by connecting online with clients and patients.

Young teachers and nurses were especially vulnerable to this, Dr Thornthwaite said.

''It is understandable this happens because this is how young people communicate these days, but it could be easily judged as an inappropriate relationship,'' she said.

There were also a growing number of cases where social media posts were used as evidence to suggest a worker had been unprofessional, or to challenge personal injury claims.

In a health industry publication, lawyer Joanna Burton, wrote of four incidents where a trail of social media posts were used to show that health professionals had engaged in inappropriate sexual relationships with current or former patients.

In one case, messages from the online dating website RSVP were used as evidence that a psychologist was pursuing more than friendship with a patient.

In the past, these cases often had little evidence to prove an inappropriate relationship whereas new technology and social media platforms could leave a permanent online footprint over which participants have limited control and which could be used against them in a court or disciplinary tribunal, said Mrs Burton, a senior associate at Barry Nilsson Lawyers.

Dr Barnes said employers were responsible for ensuring they had a social media policy, and workers were made aware of it. ''If you are going to discipline or sack people because of what they say on social media it needs to be pretty clear that the employee knows that is not acceptable.''

An Education Department spokeswoman said teachers were advised not to friend present students on social media, but there were exceptions, such as a teacher ''friending'' their own child, or using the site for educational purposes.